As the Ash Rises
by Quriaa
Summary: A lone Unkindled rises in an unknown age, destined to fulfill his life's purpose. Umtil he finds a young maiden who knew him in his past life. He seeks his love to reunite with her and rekindle their lives.
1. As the Ash Rises

**Chapter 1: As the Ash Rises**

A bell can be heard in the distance, giving off a loud ring, signaling the summoning of a weary soul. Off in a far hidden cemetery, ash stirs and a body rises. A man takes form from the ash, unsure of where or what he was. He looked around him and then down at his hand. He noticed they were covered in a nice lightweight yet protective set of plate armour. The man turns to where his grave was and sees a shield and sword pair. He takes them and a note slides to the ground. He picks up the letter and reads the beautifully constructed work.

Whoever had written it was clearly skilled, showing off at some points with their beautiful handwriting. The letter told him to take his equipment and press forward to the temple. On the other side, his "special one" would be waiting for him. The Unkindled does as he was told and presses forward, pausing as he runs into a cloaked man with a shadowy aura about him. He slowly approaches the figures to make sure he was fine. He gets close enough to touch the man before the man snaps at him, flashing a dagger. The man swipes furiously at the Unkindled, making him run back after he gets struck. The man pursues, leaving the Unkindled with no choice but to fight back. He gets close and the Unkindled strikes.

In one quick thrust, he impales the man on the blade, causing the man to erupt and fall into ash. The Unkindled looks where he had killed the man, only to see a ghostly white orb. He reaches out and grasps the soul, taking it for his own as it sinks into his body. The Unkindled shivers involuntarily, as he consumes the souls. He hurries on the beaten path, running into a few more of the same figures. He shakily dispatches them all, leaving him feeling sick to his stomach as his armour and sword were covered in sickly black blood. He rounds the corner of a hill and comes to a bonfire. He sighs as he walks to it and sits down to rest. Suddenly, a warm and bubbly feeling coats his body and the damage done to his armour and weapons is cleaned in a heartbeat. Energy fills his already tired body, invigorating him to stand up and progress. He goes through his last swarm of enemies rather easily, ending him at an arena of graves.

The Unkindled walks in cautiously and takes in his surroundings. In the middle of the arena was a kneeling statue with a smoldering sword similar to a stake through its chest. The Unkindled approaches slowly and grabs the hilt of the sword, pulling it out. He steps back as he pulls it out of the statue and the sword crumbles into ash. The statue stands up quickly and draws its stone halberd. It moves as fast as lightning and impales the Unkindled, raising him into the air and then smashing him into the ground for the killing blow.

The Unkindled jolts upright as soon as he passes into the soothing after-life, only to see he was right back at the bonfire. He shakily gets up and notices all the enemies he had killed before where back. He starts forward and gets rid of them as quickly as he could, unfortunately, getting hit this time. He pauses before going to the new fog wall that blocked his arena to look at his tool belt. He sees an odd flask there and takes it in one hand. It was filled with an odd yellow liquid that smelled faintly of honey. He raises his visor and takes a sip of the fluid. Immediately, the feeling the bonfire had given him takes over his body, giving him a well needed energy boost.

He touches the fog wall in front of him and passes through after his energy high goes down and comes face to face with the statue that so easily killed him. He immediately dodges the first attack, taking a chance to swipe at the beast's leg as it tries to kick him. Blood spills, showing that the swipe did in fact do damage. The Unkindled immediately backs away, taking time to access the situation before the monster could strike again. He gets off a few more hits before the beast staggers and falls.

Out of seemingly nowhere, the statue's back erupts into a seething black and pulsating demon that towers over the Unkindled. It picks him up before he could react and does serious amounts of damage. The Unkindled thankfully had more of the odd potion and takes a swig, regenerating himself to continue the fight. After another 3 minute dance of battle, the Unkindled strikes the beast one last time and it dies.

Fire engulfs the Unkindled's body, worrying him as the flames tickle him. He notices however, they were actually increasing his strength, rather than hurting him. He leaves the arena out the back exit, passing through the door as he opens it. He sees a large and looming temple before him and starts to sprint to the location. He makes it into the entrance and steps in, heading to see what lied before him.

* * *

 **Quriaa: Hey guys, this is my first every time writing a fanfic! I hope you guys enjoyed the first chapter, since I will be posting my second soon, I promise. Anyways, don't be afraid to leave a comment and tell me your oppinions!**


	2. An Ember Meets Flame

**Chapter 2: An Ember Meets Flame**

The Unkindled enters the Firelink shrine carefully, overlooking the balcony to see what was inside. He did not expect much, especially how everything before him had just seemed to be some broken and distant land that had far lost its beauty. But as he entered, he truly realized how beautiful this place was.

The entire building hummed with an orange and red light of a low-burning bonfire in the center of the room. The next thing that caught the new Unkindled's eye was a beautiful woman with silvery hair that sat on the steps surrounding the clearing the bonfire sat. She didn't even seem to notice the man enter her domain as she blankly stared into the flame.

It was only as the Unkindled came closer, did he realize why she seemed to stare blankly. It was more than just her not noticing,but rather that her eyes were actually covered by an odd tiara of sorts. However, even in her disability, she stood up almost instantly as the man approached. She gave him a patient and gentle smile as she looked in the general direction of the Unkindled.

The Unkindled came to her feet and bowed down to her, looking up at her covered eyes with a slight tilt to his head. He reached up and was greeted with her hands grasping his gauntleted ones. Suddenly, as if being pulled out of him, all of the souls he had collected formed in his hand. And then the woman spoke.

"Speak thine desires, o lord of ash…" Her voice was stoic and yet just as gentle as her appearance as she spoke. The Unkindled was caught off guard and stuttered to produce even a sound. Every time her tried to speak, only a puff of air would come out. It had seemed that he wouldn't be able to request what he wanted. Yet the woman seemed to know what he wanted in a heartbeat, transfiguring the souls he offered into new strength for the Unkindled. He stood up once she had let his hands go and looked around. He bowed to her and she bowed in response as a goodbye. He headed down the hall and met the two other dwellers of his new home.

He rather enjoyed the company and jokes of the gruff blacksmith, while taking more than a bit of his time to sit down and listen to the handmaid's stories of her past experiences. Once he bade them both farewell, he returned to the Firekeeper to ask what to do next. She gave him a gentle and patient smile as she took one of his hands in hers, leading him to the bonfire. She gestures at the spindle sword that the Unkindled had long forgotten he'd picked up. He places the spindle in the fire and it erupts forth. The ashes drift into the air and an image forms of a castle. The Unkindled reaches to the ashes, caught by surprise as he is pulled in, and dropped into an unfamiliar terrain.

He stands where he was placed in what seemed to be a dingy room made for nothing more than a prisoner or two. He came to the door that was before him and shouldered it open, stepping out into the new land. He caught an odd wind of familiarity as he looked around the lands. He slowly walked down the stairs and saw the next bonfire waiting for him. It crinkled at his presence in a welcoming manner, inviting him to sit down and have a moment's rest. Once feeling replenished, he stood from the fire and set forth to see the challenges that lied before him.

 **Quriaa: Hey guys, I hope you enjoy this chapter. I promise it will get better as time progresses, because I have a lot planned ahead for this story. The next one will probably dive a little into the romance I promise.**


End file.
